28 January 2010

Staying at home with a baby all day, it’s easy to forget about your own goals or well-being. I was certainly more tuned in to my own needs when I was working and didn’t have another person depending on me.

A few years ago I took a workshop on setting and achieving goals. At the time I didn’t fully appreciate how the material could apply to my life outside the office; I simply just lived and did as I pleased from day-to-day. I have always written out my yearly goals at work to set priorities, meet deadlines and achieve milestones. Until now, I never realized that I could also do the same outside of the workplace.

Being the quintessential organizer, I tend to respond well to lists. If I’m planning a party, I make a list of action items. If I’m doing groceries, I make a list. If I’m packing for a vacation, I make a list. So why not make a bigger list? While I’m not quite ready to plan out a bucket list (things to do before I kick the proverbial bucket), I figured I’ll aim a bit smaller and try to make a list of things I want to accomplish before 2011. By writing them down for all to see, hopefully I’ll be a little more accountable. Here goes…

Goals for 2010 (in no particular order)

- Post daily on my blog

- Start writing a satirical book about motherhood (seriously!)

- Exercise out of the house at least 1 day/ week

- Treat myself to haircut and colour every 3 months

- Drink wine only once on weekends or for very special occasions

- Add more $$$ to savings account before move

- Write a will

- Open a savings account for Andrew, add $50 month

- Finalize his life insurance policy

- Start contributing to RRSPs

- Throw a final party in our current home

- Lose 10 lbs by my 29th birthday in March

- Clean basement and purge the junk by end of April

- Purchase sofa, appliances and new TV

- Move to new house and have all boxes unpacked by end of May

- Throw hubby a 30th birthday party in June

- Find a daycare provider for Andrew by October

- Get down to 130 lbs (minimum) by October

- Bring Andrew to playgroups twice each month after we move

- Get my drivers license!

- Stick to weekly meal plans

- Go on a date with hubby at least one time/ month

- Have more girl nights (every 2 months)

- Read a new book each month

- Run a 5K marathon in the Fall

- Throw a party for Andrew’s 1st birthday

- Host Christmas dinner in the new house

I’m sure more items will pop up as the year progresses. I’ll be sure to check the list again in June, cross off some of my goals and amend others. Let’s see how well I do!

26 January 2010

- finalize all design elements and colours for the new home- put our house on the market- clean the house for viewings- accept an offer – we had three in 24 hours- cook a birthday dinner for my father-in-law- clean the house again- have a home inspection completed by the buyers- bring Andrew on a fieldtrip to introduce him to coworkers- do a walkthrough of the new construction- bake and prepare a truckload of food- have Andrew baptized- host Andrew’s baptism reception at our house- clean house again

While my cold thankfully died off midway through the week, I mysteriously injured my coccyx on Friday night. I ended up spending Andrew’s baptism on pain medication and little to no sleep. Sadly I had to miss my Zumba class on Sunday, although I’m not quite sure how I would have fit it into the mix anyways.

Despite being overtired, run off my feet and in pain, it was a good week. Andrew’s baptism was the icing on the proverbial cake. I bawled my eyes out through the service and kept thinking how strange it was to baptize my child in the same church where I received my communion, confirmation, and wedding sacraments. It felt good to introduce him to faith, something that had been lacking in my life over the past few years. Something about being a parent draws me back to religion –I’m not sure whether it’s comfort, convention, or a sense of duty to start Andrew on the right path. Either way, I’m glad to share this part of my own upbringing with my son. I hope that he will grow to have faith. It’s good to give thanks, appreciation and have hope in something greater than oneself.

Andrew was an absolute angel during the whole service. In my humble opinion, he was cutest little guy there! He simply sat on our laps, took in the scenery and soaked up the attention from the family. He didn’t cry over the baptismal font..if anything I think he would have preferred to play in it. He did his family proud!

21 January 2010

Once again, I find myself and Andrew uprooted from our home and taking over Mom and Dad's place. Normally I would mind the hassel but I'm not about to complain because our buyers have scheduled a home inspection for today. Right now there is a small convoy of people going through my house trying to pick out problems and find faults. I really hope that everything is alright; the house is only 3 1/2 years old but you never know how good the workmanship of contractors is these days in new constructions. Either way, we will get the final verdict from the buyers no later than 8:00 PM tomorrow. Their agent will hopefully press for them to sign today if there are no issues.

Can you tell I'm anxious to be done with all this? I guess I should consider us lucky because we got multiple offers after only one day of viewings (not even an Open House). Some people have to wait months for their house to sell, let alone have an inspection done on top of that. Even though the agents have been told that the house is conditionally sold, some still want to bring their clients through because they are eager to make backup offers in the event that our current buyers fall through. It's always nice to have a plan B and to know that our humble little abode is in high demand.

This week has certainly been a whirlwind and I'll be glad to see the end of it. Mix in house viewings with the inspection, keeping the house spotless, a birthday dinner for my Father-In-Law (hosted at our place last night), bringing Andrew to work for intoductions (tomorow), a walk through of our new construction (Saturday) and Andrew's baptism and reception (Sunday)...what a week! Of course, I've had top deal with eveything with a bad cold to boot. If the old adage "What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger," is true, then I'm one hell of a strong lady.

Continue to keep those fingres crossed folks! Hopefully all the home hooplah will be over tonight and I can go back to my life of relative calm. Oh well, I certainly can't complain of boredom. This time next week I'll likely be back to twiddling my thumbs wishing there was more to do.

19 January 2010

I can’t believe it! After only twenty-four hours on the market and eight viewings, our house received three decent offers last night. The winning offer was above asking price and the buyer agreed to our move in date. All we have to do now is pass a home inspection this week and, barring any complications, the sale will be final on Friday!

I am so relieved to have this almost behind me. I was afraid that the buyers wouldn’t agree to our moving date as it’s still four months away. I kept fearing the worst – that we would have to find a place to live between moving houses. Now we just have to keep our fingers crossed that the new place will be finished according to schedule.

18 January 2010

As a matter of fact, our house hasn't even been on the market for 24 hours and we already have SEVEN viewings booked. The sale sign hasn't even been put up yet and our Open House is only scheduled for next weekend. Looks like the Ottawa resale market is still hot despite the coller weather.

I can fully understand why people say that, next to marraige, seeling a house is one of life's most stressful events. On top of having to take care of Drew with a nmiserable cold, this morning I had roughly three hours to tidy up the house, depersonalize the decor and hide away all the toys and bits and bobs lying around. I also had to pack up most of Drew's gear to head over to Mom and Dad's house, where we are currently living during weekdays to accomodate viewings and agents doing walkthroughs.

I feel like a complete vagabond at the moment. The bambino and I have been uprooted and it's strange knowing that complete strangers are walking through my home and probably snooping in my cupboards as I type out this post. It's hard to feel at home in your own house when you know that people are going to be walking through and critiquing it. For the next few days hubby and I are going to have to rid of all traces that we even live there - not so easy when you have a baby. For the time-being, home is just a place to sleep. Thankfully Andrew is still young enough that he doesn't really mind a change of scenery; he is currently napping away in his playpen and seems none too fussed, so long as I'm around.

Keep those fingers crossed folks. We're hoping for multiple offers and hopefully we won't even have to have an Open House next weekend.

13 January 2010

Our little man is growing up! Despite still having a very large and heavy melon, Drew managed to roll over for the second time today. The first roll happened at 10 weeks of age and we have been hoping to catch a repeat performance everyday for the past two weeks. Of course, he decided to hide his new skill any time we aimed the video camera at him. My patience and persistence was finally rewarded this morning and, thankfully, I was able to grab my camera just in time.

Looks like I have a strong boy on my hands. Hubby found him with his little face smooshed up against the rails of his crib this morning, despite having been put to bed for the evening in a tight swaddle and in the middle of the crib. He must have wormed his way over to the side during the night. Gone are the days of simply being able to put him down somewhere, knowing that he’ll be in the same place and position when I turn my back. I’m not sure whether to cheer or cry.

12 January 2010

Once again it seems that I can’t keep up with the daily blog updates, or weekly for that matter. Despite the fact that I’m home all day, having the time to actually sit down and collect my thoughts is rare.

Life with Andrew has certainly becoming more interesting. He is turning into quite the curious and sociable little guy. There so much in this big world that he wants to see and he hates to miss a second of it. Sadly, he also thinks that life should be the 24/7 “Andrew Show”. He actually pouts and grumbles when we’re eating supper and not playing with him. Being his primary caregiver, I’m his absolute hero right now and he usually wants to be glued to my side; it’s lovely to be loved so much but it’s also quite exhausting!

January is shaping up to be a bit chaotic with activities going on almost every other day. It feels good to get out again and start taking Drew around with us. I have enrolled us in a Salsa Babies class starting next week and I’m anxious to start Zumba lessons with a girlfriend this weekend. Amidst the new exercise endeavours, hubby and I will also be having Drew baptized on January 24 and we have two appointments to finalize all the structural and design elements of our new home. Tack on a few birthday parties to the mix and you have quite the January lineup. I love being busy, it’s what I am accustomed to. We’re gradually sinking into the “new normal” and it feels great.

Tonight hubby and I are heading to church for a baptismal meeting with Andrew’s future Godparents – the fabulous M & L. Hubby has known M since the day he was born; they were best friends and neighbours up until roughly the age of twenty-one. M has been with his wife L for almost as long as hubby and I have been together and she has quickly become a very close friend and special person in our lives. We are thrilled that they have agreed to play this special role in our son’s life; he’s one lucky little man.

There is something very emotional about having Drew baptized; I guess it’s because it’s his first major sacrament and I feel like he’s growing up. We took him to his first mass this past Sunday for his presentation to the parish and our church. It felt surreal to hold him as I recited prayers and hymns learnt during my childhood, standing in the church where I received my own communion, confirmation and took my marriage vows. It’s amazing how life comes full circle. While I may not always be the most devout Catholic, it feels good to share this aspect of my life and my own upbringing with the next generation. I hope that faith is something that he will come to value in his own life, in whatever form it takes.

06 January 2010

Now that the holidays are over, not to mention all holiday indulgences, it’s time to finally focus my attention on getting rid of this nasty, wobbly, post-preggo belly. I’m stuck in a horrible rut right now where both maternity clothing and regular clothing don’t seem to fit me properly. I spend most of my days in jammies or yoga pants because that’s all I really have. As someone who was accustomed to taking care of my appearance, I now look like a sad and sorry shadow of my former self. There’s only one solution – get back to the gym and toss the crap from the cupboard.

Fitting exercise into my schedule hasn’t been easy with a baby. I try to fit in an hour of home workouts when hubby comes home and puts Drew down to sleep. I find myself dragging my heals some days and finding the motivation after a long day of keeping up with the little guy’s demands can be tricky. Any time I’m feeling lazy, I go into my closet and look at all the beautiful clothes that no longer fit. If I’m feeling particularly lethargic, I’ll whip out pictures of myself in a bikini in Mexico… that’s particularly torturous.

While I’m certain that my body will never return to its Mexico glory, at least not without a nip and a tuck, I’m bound and determined to fit back into most of my clothing by the time I return to work in October. With a new home to pay for in May and a baby in daycare I can’t afford a new wardrobe. The pressure is on – lose weight or wear a loin cloth…

In an attempt to keep things fresh, motivating and interesting, I have signed up for a Zumba class at the local community centre. I needed to add something different into my rotation as the home exercise DVDs were getting dull; I also need to escape from the house so that I don’t go stir crazy. I’m very excited to start my class as it’s a mix of high-impact Latin dance and cardio. If there is one thing I love and miss with all my heart, it’s dancing! While I may look scary shaking my flabby belly around, I think this will be a great way to let off some steam and “hopefully” shed some of the remaining 30 lbs I aim to lose. A girlfriend of mine has also joined the class so at any rate we’ll have a blast laughing at ourselves.

I have also enrolled Andrew and I in Salsa Babies – a weekly class where I wear Andrew in my baby carrier and dance around to salsa music with other Moms. I’m a little nervous because this will be my first time going out and meeting other Moms and babies. I guess I feel anxious about Drew having a meltdown but it’ a fear I have to get over. I figure that if anyone understands crying babies, it’s certainly other mothers. I have done a few test runs wearing Drew around home and dancing; he usually likes the motion and is lulled to sleep. Yesterday it took two salsas and a meringue to get him down for his nap…whatever works.

Wish me luck folks, both on the losing weight front and on returning to society. It’s scary out there but it’s even scarier at home, wearing flannel reindeer pajama pants every day.

01 January 2010

Happy New Year! I’m not sure how 2010 could ever top 2009 but I’m sure we're in for an equally busy and memorable ride.

Sorry I have been remiss in posting updates over the holidays. Despite having hubby at home to help out with Drew, it has been a bit of a whirlwind around here to say the least. I am both proud and exhausted to report that we officially survived Andrew’s first major holiday. I am equally thrilled to report that he was an absolute angel, for the most-part, during multiple family dinners and outings.

Drew certainly adds an extra layer of complexity to preparing for the holidays but it was beyond amazing to finally share Christmas with my own child. All of a sudden the holidays are exciting again! I delighted in seeing what “Santa” delivered for our little guy rather than what was in my own stocking. I think Drew did very well for himself and managed quite the haul of loot for his first Christmas; I’m still, however, trying to figure out how on earth he managed to make it onto Santa’s “Good” list…

On behalf of my little family, I’d like to wish everyone a happy, health and prosperous new year. Thanks for following the blog and hope you’ll continue to follow our adventures in 2010.